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Whether you’re stuck indoors together on a rainy day or looking for ways to enjoy the summer sun as a family, you can provide your toddler with hours of entertaining activities that sneak in some learning, too. Before you know it, you’ll have a scrapbook full of memories, a toddler flourishing with new skills and knowledge and a happy, well-bonded family — and enough paint on the walls and floors to use up a year’s supply of elbow grease. Here are the ways to get your family involved in these dynamic two-year-old activities.
From cooking together to crafting: Family activities for toddler
Let your youngster explore her creative side with a variety of arts-and-crafts, and cooking projects you can enjoy together as a family.
Bake together
When it comes to baking, keep it simple — these easy chocolate chip cookies would be perfect for little hands. Grab a step stool for your toddler and have the ingredients — flour, butter, sugar, eggs, and chocolate chips all measured out. After putting on your aprons, have your family begin mixing their ingredients together.
Build a modeling-clay island
A great tactile (and innovative) project for a toddler is building a modeling-clay island. Have the family team up and show the little guy how to roll the playdough in their hands to create small rocks or mountains.
Cook dinner
Whether you’re just putting together snacks or preparing an elaborate meal, make it a family activity and let your toddler help out with measuring, peeling, mixing and other simple tasks. You can even have a mini dance party in the kitchen.
“My husband and I dance and sing in the kitchen. It’s like dinner and a show for our son,” mom Jessica Kelly shared with Mom.com. “My husband and I can have our moments, too. Some days [our son] joins us and we have a dance party.”
Sock Puppets
Find those old socks, glue on yarn for hair and slap on those crafting eyeball stickers and — ta-dah you have made a sock puppet. The designs for the sock puppets could be simple or complex, and when it comes to creating an actual sock puppet drama, the storyline can be unnecessarily silly.
Getting physical: Outside activities for kids
Get physical together to start teaching your toddler early about the importance of a healthy, active lifestyle. “Athletic skills such as running, kicking a ball, and throwing a ball can be introduced with a wide variability of success depending on the individual toddler’s developmental state,” pediatric sports medicine specialist Carlos Uquillas told Healthline.
So, try it all! Play tag in the backyard or kick a ball around.
Obstacle Course
Create an obstacle course in the backyard to encourage gross motor skill development, or play some simple relay-race games to help your child expend some extra energy. All that is needed are cones or pillows, hula hoops, and maybe some sidewalk chalk to create a “tight-rope” for the course.
Hide and Seek
It’s easy to keep toddlers entertained with a game of hide-and-seek. One parent should hide while the other helps your toddler seek. Play this while you and your family are in your backyard or are in the house.
Kickball
Kickball is a fun way to engage the whole family and to excitedly introduce the rules of baseball. Gather a large plush or rubber soccer ball and find a few cones to act as bases in order to get this game started.
Enjoying the sun: Summer activities for kids
Help your toddler explore the world around her with adventures around the neighborhood, and family trips to educational and entertaining venues such as children’s museums, and crop and animal farms. Even a family bike ride around the neighborhood provides you with plenty of opportunities for exploration.
“Fresh air is great for [my son]. He will take a great nap afterwards and he laughs when we ring the bells and when we out point trees, birds, and dogs,” Jessica said about the bike rides she takes with her husband and son.
Butterfly farms
Spring is butterfly season. Grab the wondrous book The Hungry Caterpillar to familiarize your child with a butterfly’s metamorphosis, and then find a local butterfly farm to see the process in action.
Fruit picking at a local farm
Get the family out of the house and set out to explore farm life by visiting a local farm to learn about the fruit orchards. Have them pick their own fruits and who knows — your toddler might even try a fruit that she has always avoided.
Farmer’s Market
Find out where and when your neightborhood’s farmer’s market occurs, and align your family’s schedules. Pick up fresh produce, and unique clothing and artifact finds.
Outdoor picnic
On a warm summer late afternoon, an impromptu picnic can help settle your little one before he sleeps. Jessica shared how she takes advantage of the moment to have what she calls “lazy picnic dinners.” “We get foods [our son] can eat for dinner that are not messy — like a charcuterie board with cheese, edamame, and blueberries.”
Children’s museums
Sometimes the summers are just too hot and in the middle of the day, the last place that you want your toddler to be is outside. So, take your little tyke and the rest of your family to a nearby children’s museum where the coolness of the building will help ease the temperaments of your little one.
*Disclaimer: The advice on Mom.com is not a substitute for consultation with a medical professional or treatment for a specific condition. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem without consulting a qualified professional. Please contact your health-care provider with questions and concerns.
